Code Officer Turns Whistleblower

Inspector Hurls Accusations, Faces Disciplinary Action

July 2, 1996|By DAVID NITKIN Staff Writer and Staff Writer Buddy Nevins contributed to this report.

In what may be a parting shot before losing his job, a Broward County senior code enforcement officer says he was ordered to ignore violations at properties owned by politically influential business leaders.

Mike Natale, who is also a city councilman in North Lauderdale, has charged that "selective enforcement" called for by his superiors halted code investigations into several notable county properties, including the Swap Shop flea market near Fort Lauderdale and the Silver Oaks Mobile Home Park in Davie.

The Swap Shop is run by Preston Henn, and the trailer park is owned by a trust controlled by the Forman family. Henn and the Formans are influential business leaders with deep political connections.

Broward County Administrator B. Jack Osterholt said Monday that Natale's allegations would be thoroughly investigated.

"I try not to take a position on matters like this until after we have some facts," Osterholt said. "These are serious charges and they will be dealt with in a serious manner."

Natale's boss, Code and Zoning Enforcement Director Susan Pierce, said she had no knowledge of inspections being called off for political reasons.

She said the timing of Natale's charges makes them suspect; he's scheduled for formal disciplinary action, possibly today, on allegations that he misused his office for personal gain.

According to county documents, Natale attended a pre-disciplinary meeting June 12 to discuss charges that he "misused county equipment ... demonstrated improper conduct during scheduled work hours ... [and) demonstrated gross insubordination."

The charges against Natale stemmed from a complaint about his use of a county car and cellular phone during his election campaign for the North Lauderdale City Commission, Pierce said. Natale was re-elected to the council in March.

He has been suspended with pay from his inspector's job since the June 12 meeting. Final punishment could range from firing to a reprimand.

Natale could not be reached for comment despite several telephone calls and being paged Monday.

At the June 12 meeting, Pierce had asked Natale to respond to the accusations against him. The reply took the form of a counterattack detailing wrongdoing in the Code and Zoning Enforcement Division.

In his three page letter, Natale gave the following examples of alleged impropriety:

-- Natale said after his investigation into the Silver Oaks trailer park revealed 300 violations, "I was ordered not to investigate this matter any further."

Pierce said the county never ignored violations there. In 1992, she said, the county entered into a legal agreement with Silver Oaks to clean up code violations. "We were consistently in there patrolling," Pierce said.

-- An investigation into the East Coast Industrial Park near Pompano Beach revealed that retail businesses there were being run illegally. Natale said his superiors ignored the violations and expunged them from records. County documents available Monday showed 133 violations at the industrial park between 1991 and 1995, but it was unclear what problems were cited and at which businesses. The code division did not have ownership records for the industrial park available Monday.

-- Natale says he was ordered not to investigate the Swap Shop during a sweep of Franklin Park, a mixed-use distressed neighborhood nearby. "The Swap Shop has been given special privileges not consistent with Broward County's zoning codes," Natale wrote.

Pierce said Natale should not have been investigating the Swap Shop because it is outside the boundries of Franklin Park, an area that is receiving special attention from a variety of county agencies and is to serve as a prototype for community revitalization.

The code division did not have records of inspections at the tourist attraction.

County Commissioner Lori Parrish, who works at the Swap Shop as a a vice president and runs Florida Drive-in Management, a company providing bookkeeping and other services there, says she has never tried to influence county business at the flea market.

"Absolutely not," Parrish said. "That's just not part of the mindset here. We comply with all the local, state and federal laws, without exception."

The letter contains other supposed examples that are more vague, and does not name Henn, the Formans or anyone in the county as demanding favorable treatment.

Natale is one of four senior-level field officers in the department who oversee other inspectors. Natale said Ray Clements, another senior inspector, also was ordered to ignore violations.

The letter was released the same day that Pierce fired the assistant director of the code and zoning division, Orlando Huguet.

Clements and Huguet have been under investigation since March for problems similar to Natales'.

Pierce presented information about Natale and Huguet to the State Attorney's office, but they declined to pursue criminal charges, documents show.

Huguet could be fired because he was a non-union management employee, she said. Clements and Natale must go through union proceedings, which are expected to begin this week - when more details of charges against them should become available.